Eaves Brook’s Neighbourhood Management team held a ‘Fayre on the Square’ in Barnes Square, Clayton le Moors on St George’s Day and the festivities saw more than 1000 people come along to join in the fun.
The Fayre was organised for local residents to celebrate the opening of Neighbourhood Management’s Clayton-le-Moors office, which is located in the Civic Hall Basement.
Neighbourhood Management is run by local housing association, Eaves Brook to give local people a ‘voice’ and to provide them with information about local services such as Working Links and the Police. The new office is intended to become a ‘one-stop-shop’ for residents requiring information and is also a place where they can come and chat with a member of the team about their local area.
Abi Winstanley, Neighbourhood Manager for the area explains:
“It is often difficult for people to know where to come if they have a query or problem in their area. They may have an issue with crime or a problem with their housing. They might want to look for work but don’t know where to start so it makes sense for people to be able to come to us and we can then put them in touch with the right people.”
She adds:
“Neighbourhood Management is also about creating a sense of community and getting people involved, and the ‘Fayre on the Square’ was a great way to start things off!”
Entry to the Fayre, which was open between 12noon and 5.00pm, was free of charge but donations were collected throughout the day on behalf of East Lancashire Hospice and the Macmillan Nurses.
Staff from local pub, The Forts Arms were patriotically dressed as the ‘Clayton Crusaders’ and, led by landlord ‘Sir Carl’, embarked on a St Georges’ Day Mission to neighbouring pubs and bars to raise money for the Hospice. So far they have raised £200.00 and counting…
All monies generated by activities run by the Neighbourhood Management team were also donated to the Hospice and a total of £286.50 was raised.
The Wellington Hotel used the event to raise £361.50 for the Macmillan Nurses, by holding a Bread and Jam stall and a ‘Stars in their Eyes’ competition later in the evening.
The likes of Frank Sinatra, The Village People, The Weather Girls and Patsy Kline played to a packed out Wellington Hotel, and the audience were clearly thrilled at the spectacle.
At the Fayre itself, there were numerous stalls selling everything from American beadwork and North American Indian Craft through to bric-a-brac, cake stalls and a tombola.
There were a number of information stalls from the Police, Neighbourhood Management, the local Girl Guides, who also ran a craft stall, and the Fire Brigade who gave a number of informative demonstrations throughout the day.
Other attractions included a fortune-teller, face painting, puppet shows, and displays from the Civic Hall Jujitsu Club and the Accrington Crusader Majorettes.
Competitions included the fancy dress, balloon race and the inflatable assault course, which was a great source of hilarity throughout the day!!
Abi Winstanley continues:
“We really could not have predicted the success of the day. The turnout was absolutely fantastic and it’s certainly something we will consider holding again. We are thrilled at the amount that was raised for East Lancashire Hospice and the Macmillan Nurses and we cannot thank the people of Clayton enough for their generosity and helping to make such a wonderful day. The community spirit is very much alive and well here and I’m just delighted that everyone had such a good time!”
The Neighbourhood Management office is located in the basement of the Civic Hall in Clayton-le-Moors and is open 9.00am – 5.00pm Monday to Friday (closed 1.00pm –2.00pm for lunch.)
For further information call the Neighbourhood Management team
on 01254 875 691.
There is also a Neighbourhood office located at 18 India Street in Church and they can be contacted on 01254 879 356